Page 23 of Dibs
There was a pause and then Gage replied, “Yeah, my ex-wife bailed and I actually have a thing tonight. Would it be okay with Jamie if the boys slept over after we ate?”
I pulled the phone away from my mouth as I asked Jamie, “Gage has plans tonight and is wondering if his sons can spend the night?”
“Of course.”
“Yes!” Jase boomed from across the kitchen.
“Yeah, man. Have them bring their stuff,” I said back into the phone.
“All right. When’s dinner?”
“Come over now,” I answered without hesitating.
“Okay, we’ll be there soon.”
We hung up, and I immediately went to the fridge for a beer. Why was I freaking out? It wasn’t as if we’d havethe talkin front of my family and former in-laws. Or at all.
* * *
By the timeGage and his boys arrived, I was on my second IPA. Jase beat me to the door to welcome them and once I saw my former roommate, we shook hands, and then I offered him a beer.
“Just one.” He handed me a bottle of red wine as though he needed to bring something over and not show up empty-handed.
“Right, you need to leave after we eat.”
“Yeah.” He didn’t elaborate why.
“Are you meeting Heather?” I asked after Gage greeted Jamie and her parents and I went to the fridge to get him the beer. Dylan and Jase had run off to Jase’s room, Tyler had settled in the corner of the kitchen, glued to his phone, and Cammie was playing with her dolls in the other room.
Gage reached for the bottle. “No. I have a gig tonight.”
I blinked. “A gig?”
“I play in a band.” He twisted the cap off the bottle.
“You … play in a band?” I leaned against the kitchen island. I knew it had been almost two decades since we’d been close, but I hadn’t known him to play an instrument.
“I do. Just a little side fun.”
“What do you play?” Helen inquired.
“Guitar,” he replied and my eyes went to his hand that was wrapped around the beer bottle.
“You should go watch him play tonight,” Jamie suggested.
Gage and I stared at each other for a beat and then he said, “Yeah, that would be cool.”
It wasn’t as though I had plans other than going home and showering before I crawled into bed for the night.
“I guess it’s settled,” I agreed.
“Okay, well, there are too many cooks in the kitchen. Why don’t the men go watch football?” Jamie suggested.
“Don’t need to tell us twice.” I chuckled and grabbed my beer.
“Turn the Cowboys game on and I’ll be there in a bit. Need the little boy’s room,” Pat said.
I motioned for Gage to follow me to the living room and I turned on the game. Tyler stayed in the kitchen, still on his phone, and Gage and I sat on opposite couches, a ton of questions I wanted to ask swirling in my head.
